£12 Million Or No Deal: Middlesbrough Ask Aston Villa For £12m For Jordan Rhodes

Middlesbrough are asking for £12m from Aston Villa to sign out-of-favour striker Jordan Rhodes, according to The Sun, as the Premier League club look recoup their investment in the former Blackburn Rovers player.

Rudy Gestede could be used as part of a fee-plus-player deal, though Boro do not have the same £7m valuation on the player.

Middlesbrough are happy to let Rhodes go quickly and the clubs will try to sort out the deal in the next few days before an early transfer as soon as the window opens.

A 1-0 defeat against Burnley on Boxing Day leaves Aitor Karanka’s side four points clear of Sunderland in the final relegation place.